Talk:Oxford University

The original author somewhat misrepresents the status of religion at Oxford University. It is no longer a religious institution. About 2% (extrapolating from the numbers present at my college) of the undergraduate is studying theology. Indeed, most theology courses have a large analytic philosophy component. Jesus College is not a religious institution. It is a secular academic community. Some of the students are religious (there are Christians, Sikhs, Muslims and Jews studying there), but many are not. Many Oxford colleges have religious names (even the ones that don't sound religious, such as Lincoln College, are often named after medieval bishops), but this just reflects the spirit of the times in which they were founded. The cities of Los Angeles (Spanish: approximately, 'The Angels') and San Francisco have religious names, but no one could reasonably argue that they were any more religious than Seattle, Houston, Denver or New York simply on account of their name.

While it is true that Permanent Private Halls are religious institutions, and in some cases train priests and ministers, these institutions are not representative of the whole university.

The section you amended led on from discussion of Blackfriars Hall. Feel free to add the spirit of your edit into the article, but it should be made clear that it applies to the U, not necessarily the PPH in general or BH specifically. 10pxFox(talk|contribs) 08:18, 4 May 2008 (EDT)